Damon Castillo

The words “singer/songwriter” usually conjure up images of a lone voice and an acoustic guitar. Don’t get me wrong, Damon can do that. On his latest album, Mess Of Me, just listen to the sweet, nostalgic “I'm So Happy I Could Die” or even "Saint Cecilia" which adds a Nico-inspired string quartet. But he can also deliver unabashed pop songs like “I Hope You Figure It Out” and "California Minute" as well as sexy R&B jams like “Rocket Of Love” and “Mess Of Me”. And just as his writing chops let him cross genres at will, his production chops let him tailor each song to its greatest effect, whether that is warm and sweet like "Sometime Guy", to grandiose and cinematic like "I Will Remain".

Damon is from San Luis Obispo, a town on the central coast of California that National Geographic and Oprah deemed “the happiest place in the country”. Nestled in on the south side, not far from rolling hills of pinot noir and chardonnay, he operates out of his studio, Laurel Lane.

During the course of making the album, Damon reached out to his fans to help fund its completion. After launching the crowdfunding campaign, it reached its first funding goal of $10,000 in only a week and finished well over the campaign’s stretch goal at over $14,000. “I was totally blown away by all the pledges”, said Damon. “I can’t tell you how grateful I am for all the support. I bet there’s a song in there somewhere!”